The appellant, who was 18 weeks pregnant, decided to terminate her pregnancy after separating from the respondent.
The respondent obtained an interlocutory injunction preventing the abortion, arguing that the foetus had a right to life under the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms and the Civil Code, and that he had a right to veto the abortion as the potential father.
The Supreme Court of Canada allowed the appeal and set aside the injunction, holding that a foetus is not a 'human being' under the Quebec Charter and does not possess juridical personality under the Civil Code.
The Court also found no legal basis for a potential father's right to veto a woman's decision to have an abortion.
